5K Summer Series

These are fun and friendly 5K events that take place throughout the summer, with a different club hosting each event. The competing clubs are: Cambridge & Coleridge AC, Cambridge Triathlon Club, Haverhill RC, Newmarket Joggers, Ely Runners, Saffron Striders, HI (Histon & Impington) Runners, and Royston Runners.

When do the events take place?

All events take place on a Thursday evening and start at 7.30pm, except the first and last events, which start at 7pm due to the failing light. The dates and links to results for the 2026 events are shown in the table below.

What are the races like?

There are usually around 300-350 runners in each race, which are both fun and competitive – there is always a friendly atmosphere and runners of all abilities are welcomed and well supported. The majority of participants are not superfast runners so, whether you run or jog the 5K, you’ll still get the buzz of being part of these brilliant events!

How do I enter?

All the races are FREE (HRC will pay the entry fees) and there is no registration – just turn up! However, please let us know if you are attending. Go to Team Events on the Club App Welcome screen, select the event you want to attend and click ‘I’m in’. Oh, and we car share as much as possible, so you shouldn’t need to travel to and from the event alone.

Do I need to wear a club vest?

Yes. You will need to be a club member and wear an HRC vest or t-shirt in primary Club colours, i.e. black vest/t-shirt with silver writing and side panels. If you don’t have a HRC vest or t-shirt in primary colours you can order one via the Club App.

How will I get my results?

After you cross the finish line you will be given a numbered token showing your overall finishing position. You need to hand this to our nominated token collector (whoever is holding the clipboard) and make sure you give your name too. Please don’t take the token home! The stopwatch times are then matched with finishing positions, which are matched to your names! It all takes a few days, but the results are normally posted within a few days and will appear as a link in the above table.

Don’t forget that every runner scores a point for their club so we need as many runners as possible. In addition, the top five men and top five ladies for each club score additional points (see the scoring explanation below for further details).

Are there any medals or prizes?

There are no prizes in the individual races – it’s all about club points! At the end of the series there are trophies for the male, female and overall winning clubs. There are also trophies for the top performing male and female runners across all races.

Additionally, there is a prize awarded by each club to one male and one female runner who have supported and embraced the spirit of the series (not necessarily the fastest!).

Scoring explanation

1) Every runner earns a point

No matter how fast or slow you run, you WILL score a point for the club if you complete the race. It’s simple – the more runners we have, the more points we get. This is the one competition in which every single one of us can contribute to the team score. That’s why we love it!

2) The fastest 5 ladies and 5 men from each club earn additional points

This is where we get the calculators out…our fastest runners get additional points based on their finishing positions.

The winning team gets 6 points, second 5 points and so on – its these points you see in the league table.

So that’s basically how it works, but do not assume that your position doesn’t matter if you are not one of our fastest runners, because…

3) Even if you are not one of our fastest 5, you can still reduce other clubs’ scores!

Every time you pass a competitor, you are pushing them back by one place. Even if you are not in our top 5, you may be ahead of other clubs’ fastest runners!

4) Ladies can reduce men’s scores! (But not vice versa)

The men’s competition is calculated using their OVERALL placing, whereas the female competition is based on GENDER position. This means that if our fastest ladies are able to get ahead of other clubs’ fastest 6 men we can help the men by depriving the other clubs of points.

That’s it, easy! But if ever in doubt, just run as fast as you can!

5K Summer Series Archive

The full results from previous years can be found HERE